Sturtivant Surname

1,333,288th
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 168 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
England
Highest density in:
England

Sturtivant Surname Definition:

This surname is derived from a nickname. At first sight this sobriquet would seem to be a compound of sturdy, rash, inconsiderate; and avaunt, a boast, a vaunt, and also an old French sobriquet for some reckless boaster. But I have no doubt it is one of the early nicknames given to pursuivants, harbingers, or heralds, of which this dictionary has so many instances.

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Sturtivant Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England1441:386,93126,993
Scotland111:486,71119,179
United States71:51,779,848968,877
Wales51:618,90625,852
France11:66,422,722504,397
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England191:1,282,91446,315
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States661:760,88948,111

Sturtivant Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

This surname is derived from a nickname. At first sight this sobriquet would seem to be a compound of sturdy, rash, inconsiderate; and avaunt, a boast, a vaunt, and also an old French sobriquet for some reckless boaster. But I have no doubt it is one of the early nicknames given to pursuivants, harbingers, or heralds, of which this dictionary has so many instances. Thus it means 'go-before,' from start (Middle English stirt and stert), and avaunt, forward, to the front. We are still familiar with the avantcourier. An exact parallel will be found in the case of Prickadvance (spur-forward); v. Pickavance, Purchas, Golightly, Lightfoot, &c.

Willeimus Styrtauant, 1379: Poll Tax of Yorkshire.

Willeimus Stirciuant, 1379: ibid.

Robertas Stircyuant, 1379: ibid.

John Sturdyvaunte, 1570: Reg. St. Dionis Backchurch.

1604. Buried — Mathew Sturdyvant, Old Buckenham, Norfolk: History of Norfolk.

A well-known firm of solicitors existed in Preston about 1830 styled Buck and Startifant.

1685. Buried — Elizabeth, wife of Thomas Stertevant: St. Mary Aldermary (London).

A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (1896) by Charles Wareing Endell Bardsley

The evidence is not conclusive, but the name (found also as Startivant) is apparently a nickname—‘Start Away’ !—for a messenger or pursuivant [from Middle English sterten, to start, and Anglo-French ava(u)nt, forward, away, Old French avant, Latin ab ante] Willelmus Styrtavant.—Yorks Poll-Tax, A.D. 1379.

Surnames of the United Kingdom (1912) by Henry Harrison

Sturtivant Last Name Facts

Where Does The Last Name Sturtivant Come From? nationality or country of origin

The last name Sturtivant occurs more in England more than any other country or territory. It can also appear as:. For other possible spellings of this last name click here.

How Common Is The Last Name Sturtivant? popularity and diffusion

It is the 1,333,288th most frequently used family name in the world, borne by around 1 in 43,378,250 people. The last name is predominantly found in Europe, where 96 percent of Sturtivant reside; 95 percent reside in Northern Europe and 95 percent reside in British Isles.

This surname is most frequently occurring in England, where it is borne by 144 people, or 1 in 386,931. In England Sturtivant is primarily concentrated in: Greater Manchester, where 23 percent live, Nottinghamshire, where 19 percent live and Kent, where 11 percent live. Barring England Sturtivant occurs in 4 countries. It is also found in Scotland, where 7 percent live and The United States, where 4 percent live.

Sturtivant Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The prevalency of Sturtivant has changed over time. In England the share of the population with the surname rose 758 percent between 1881 and 2014 and in The United States it decreased 89 percent between 1880 and 2014.

Phonetically Similar Names

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Sturtivant Reference & Research

Sturdevant DNA Website - A web page dedicated to the genetic research of those who bear the surname and its variants.

Sturdevant FamilyTree DNA Project - A description of a group researching the paternal lines of men who bear the surname with the help of DNA analysis.

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Footnotes

  • Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
  • Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
  • Name distribution statistics are generated from a global database of over 4 billion people - more information
  • Heatmap: Dark red means there is a higher occurrence of the name, transitioning to light yellow signifies a progressively lower occurrence. Clicking on selected countries will show mapping at a regional level
  • Rank: Name are ranked by incidence using the ordinal ranking method; the name that occurs the most is assigned a rank of 1; name that occur less frequently receive an incremented rank; if two or more name occur the same number of times they are assigned the same rank and successive rank is incremented by the total preceeding names
  • Ethnic group cannot necessarily be determined by geographic occurrence
  • Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to Sturtivant
  • To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on Family​Search, My​Heritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis